


When I Said I Quit...

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Episode: s06e09 Impact Winter, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-09-19
Updated: 2008-09-19
Packaged: 2019-05-15 04:24:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14783553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: "You have to talk this out with me, Josh, you can't just do this."





	When I Said I Quit...

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

  
Author's notes: This is part of a series of ficlets, a challenge presented to me that Josh and Donna could have had their "moment" after any given conversation. The dialog in the beginning is the scene that their moment is to springboard off of.  


* * *

DONNA: I need you.  
JOSH: (to Will) See? Tell them to put me on the list.  
DONNA: We're having our conversation now.  
JOSH: Don't you think it would be irresponsible for me to leave this administration before the end of the second term?  
DONNA: It's a conversation about me, not you.  
JOSH: I got to get over to the OEOB.  
DONNA: You have to sit down and talk to me, that's what you have to do.  
JOSH: You're very demanding today. Even Leo thinks I should be wandering the American byways in search of the next President.  
DONNA: I quit.  
JOSH: What? (she stops dead) Come on! No you don't. Walk with me.  
DONNA: Look at my face. I'm not messing with you.  
JOSH: Donna--  
DONNA: There's going to be a temp here tomorrow.  
JOSH: Oh, for ... we were supposed to have lunch ... I cancelled ... it was crappy of me.  
DONNA: This is what we were going to talk about.  
JOSH: I-I-I ... tomorrow--  
DONNA: We were going to talk about where my job was going. Because though working for you is an honour and a privilege, I'm ready for more and it's not happening here and I've started looking and--  
JOSH: Slow down. Slow down. We'll talk about it. Absolutely. You're right. Tomorrow. Lunch. You and me. (he walks away, yet again, muttering to himself in disbelief, as Donna sadly looks after him from the Bullpen) She quits. Oy. 

Donna watched Josh walk away in disbelief. How could he just completely blow off what she just said? Nearly eight years, and...

This was her last chance at anything with him, walking out of the bullpen.

"Josh!" 

He stopped right before the doors and turned around. "I have nothing to say to you right now." Then he turned and disappeared through the doors. He had nothing to say to her? Well, that was too bad for him because she had plenty to say to him.

She stormed after him. It didn't take her long to catch up with him, since he had stopped to talk to someone just on the other side of the door. To anyone else, it might have appeared as business as usual, but as Donna approached, she could hear that he seemed to be fumbling his words and the person he was talking to was looking at him strangely. The man handed Josh a file and Josh kept moving, though Donna saw that he saw her approaching. She fell right back into step with him.

"I'm serious, Donna." He replied. "If you push this, it's going to get ugly."

"It's already ugly, Josh. I quit in the middle of the bullpen." 

"Yeah, let's talk about professionalism! "

"Professionalism! ?" she shrieked as they moved through the corridors. She knew he was trying to outrun her, but with the President and CJ out of the country the only place he could truly hide from her was the Situation Room. At this point, she wasn't even above ducking into the Mens Room after him. "Professionalism! ? You ditched a meeting with me for two weeks. You canceled on me and pushed me aside. How about professionalism in the way you treat your staff?" 

He ducked into CJ's office, dropped the file on her desk and then ducked through the connecting door to the Oval Office. If Josh thought she would give upon the fight simply because they entered this room, he was nuts. 

"You have to talk this out with me, Josh, you can't just do this."

"Eight years, Donna." he hissed spinning back around on her. "Eight years gets me you quitting in the middle of the bullpen like I'm... like you haven't been...I'm so pissed I can't even form a sentence! You want to go, Donna? Go! You don't owe me any explanations. You don't owe me a God damn thing. You want to leave just like everybody else? Go right ahead." 

"That's not what's going on here, Josh." She tried to remain as calm as she could as she realized exactly what it was that was going on here now. He automatically related her leaving her job as leaving him. And, of course, why wouldn't he? That's the only way they'd ever really been able to relate to each other was through their jobs. They'd never been technically allowed to be anything else. 

"Yeah." he scoffed. He was withdrawing into himself, and Donna saw her last opportunity slipping away. Once Josh was in that corner, there was no getting him back out. She swiftly walked over to him, grabbed his wrist and tugged him out onto the portico. He was so surprised, he complied before he could resist. 

"That's NOT what's going on here, Josh." she said again. "How could you think I'd do that to you? After everything you've...how could you think I'd be like that?"

"You've been doing it for months, Donna." he finally said and she couldn't stand the tone of defeat in his voice. He sounded like he was deflating, like the fight was finally leaving him. "I canceled the meetings because I knew exactly what you wanted to talk about and I couldn't face losing you." 

"The night of the lockdown before I left for Gaza, CJ said..." Donna reconsidered immediately. She couldn't tell him everything CJ said. It would be too humiliating. "Well, let's just say that it was made clear to me that as long as I worked for you, any kind of personal relationship between us couldn't happen. And suddenly, I felt like I was out there on that limb all by myself. When I woke up in Germany and you were there, I knew I killed us, Josh. You looked so worried and then Colin came in..."

"And I knew I was too late." Josh said in a hollow voice. 

"It's not too late, Josh." Donna smiled sadly. "It's never too late for you." 

He looked at her, not really believing that she was saying what she was saying. "What?" he whispered. This was the part of the dream when he woke up, or when Toby or CJ or Leo, said, ha ha, Josh, we were just kidding, you can't really date your assistant. 

"I thought I was going to die, Josh. Twice! Once in the car and then on that operating table, and I thought then, if I was going to die, you were going to be the last person I saw." She was crying freely now and it chipped away at the last of Josh's resolve. He moved quickly to her and pulled her into his arms. She was shivering and he couldn't tell if it was from how emotional she was or if it was because it was December, but he pulled his jacket off and draped it around her shoulders anyway. 

"Please don't cry, Donna." He begged softly. "Especially because of me."

"I woke up after the surgery and you were still there and I knew that I had made a collassel mistake. You were the last and first thing I saw and I wanted that for the rest of my life and I completely destroyed it."

"You could never destroy it, Donna. It's indestructible. " He smiled lightly and kissed her forehead. 

"I don't want to leave you, Josh. The last thing in the world I want to do is leave you. I'm a complete basketcase right now because I'm standing here trying to cling to you and I feel better than I have in months because I'm in your arms. I want to leave my job, Josh, so we can be together because I want that more than anything." 

"Me too." he whispered.

And then they were kissing and it was amazing. Donna was shivering as much from the cold as the anticipation and being in Josh's arms. They kissed desparately under the light of the protico, right there outside the Oval Office of the White House. His fingers worked their way into her hair and she clung to his shirt trying to pull him closer. They apologize over and over in that kiss, and soon she stopped feeling sorry and the kiss changed and she started to feel loved. Loved by the man finally here with her now, cherished by him, maybe even worshipped by him. All she knew was that this kiss was like no other she'd ever experienced before. The raw emotion behind it was overwhelming. 

And then he pulled away...

"I have an idea." he said abruptly.

"Me too." she smiled huskily and slid her arms around his waist.

"Well, it wasn't that, but I like that idea, too." He leered at her innuendo.

"What's your idea?"

"Give me two more weeks."

"Josh..."

"Two more weeks, just to the filing deadline." he pleaded.

"What? What filing deadline?" He stared at her for a moment until she made the connection and gasped. "You have a candidate!" she whispered harshly and he nodded slowly. "You were going to leave?"

"Not until just when you said you were."

"Josh..."

"I can't be here without you, Donna, you're the only reason why I come to work everyday." She smiled widely at him and brought her hand up to his face. 

"Are you saying you want me to come with you?"

"Of course I want you to come with me."

"And do what?"

"I have no idea, but we'll figure it out together."

"I'd have to rescind my acceptance of my new job."

"Imagine how much I don't mind that." 

"Okay." she nodded smiling. He smiled back when he recognized the trust in him shining from her eyes. It was that blind devotion that she had for him that challenged him to be better and do better, and hop a plane to Germany on a wing and a prayer. 

"What was your new job?" He asked curiously. 

Uh-oh. This was not going to be a happy moment. 

"Well, now keep in mind that since I was leaving my job, it would be a good opportunity to move up and take on a job with heavier responsibility. .." she began.

"I have to be prepped for this answer?" He asked incredulously. 

"Well..."

"You may have been mad at me, but you'd never be so mad you'd work for Republicans, so why am I filled with dread thinking you were going to work for Russell?"

"Well..."

"DONNATELLA! ?" he shrieked and her eyes went wide. 

"Well, Will offered me a great position and I figured I could really learn a lot..."

"What position?"

"Midwest media targeting."

"Wow." He paused and looked at her as if he was just now seeing her for the first time in years. "You would have been really good at that."

"And now?" she smiled.

"I'm going to give you a lot more than that." he smiled.

"Plus, now I have the benefit having you, too." she flirted, running her hands up his chest. 

"You've always had me."

She smiled and kissed him again, reveling at the fact that he was such a willing recipient of the kiss and couldn't seem to get enough. 

"Could we go inside now? I'm kinda cold." he admitted.

"I don't know." she whispered in her husky voice. "I'm feeling kinda warm." 

"You're killing me." he groaned, wrapping his arm around her waist and leading her back into Debbie Fiderer's office. "Don't you even want to know who this candidate is?"

"Oh, some dark horse I'm sure that no one's ever heard of who you're going to pluck from obscurity and make the next leader of the free world." He chuckled at her response. "Well, am I right?"

"Yeah, something like that..."

THE END


End file.
